Varthur Lake after residents spotted a huge garbage
dump near the inlet canal set ablaze on Tuesday morning and the garbage pile was
dumped in the feeder canal that connects Bellandur Lake to Varthur, close to
Thubarahalli.

Meanwhile it is suspected that some miscreants set fire to the mound,
which leads to thick smoke engulfing the area. Elangovan Kulandaivelu, a member
of Whitefield Rising and a resident of the area that "The BBMP contractors
have turned this spot in to a dumping site, like Mandur. There is fair bit of
recycling and up cycling happening here, but discarded waste is left in the
canals. We have made numerous complaints, but there has been no action by
BBMP".

Sources have added that this is perhaps the first time that garbage on
Varthur lake has caught fire. In February, a massive fire broke out at
Bellandur lake, while on May 7, dry grass was allegedly set on fire by
miscreants. In May, the National Green Tribunal had directed the civic
authority to stop solid waste dumping around Bellandur lake, and were directed
to control the flow of sewage into the lake.

There has, however, been positive response for bioremediation, which will
see setting up of 500-m wetlands along storm water drains that lead into
Bellandur lakes. Of the three companies that came forward, one had been chosen,
and officials said a final approval was pending before works could start.